US Gov. provides $40 million dollars to Health Sector in Liberia

MONROVIA,
LIBERIA- The United States Government has provided forty-million United States
Dollars assistance to Liberia’s Health Sector.

According to a US Embassy
release issued Thursday, April 2, 2020, the money is part of nearly
one-hundred-million US Dollars annual assistance to Liberia.

The money, according to
the release, will also be used to support Liberia’s response to the COVID-19
pandemic.

The release also quotes
the US Embassy as saying it will work with the Health Ministry and the National
Public Health Institute of Liberia (NPHIL) to facilitate the response efforts.

Currently the US Center
for Disease Control (CDC) is supporting training for contact tracers through
its field epidemiology Training Program and Infection, Prevention and Control Training
for health care workers.

In a related development,
the CDC wants Health Authorities in Liberia identify all suspected cases of
coronavirus and take them into isolation for testing.

The US-CDC said:” By doing
that, the present COVID-19 situation in the Country will be put under control.”

Speaking Thursday, April 2,
2020, at the weekly briefing of the Incident Management Team (IMT) in Congo Town,
the Organization’s Country Director, Desmond Williams, said treatment must also
be initiated for the confirmed cases.

Dr.Williams also recommended
active contact tracing for all contacts from the confirmed cases and quarantine
them for fourteen days.

He called on Health
Authorities to deploy a strategy that will encourage community-Government’s
participation to stop the importation of COVID-19.

Meanwhile, Dr.Desmond
Williams has pledged the support of the Unite States Center for Disease Control
to defeat coronavirus in Liberia.

Also Liberia’s Health
Authorities say the tracing of the source of infection for one of the Country’s
latest three confirmed cases of CONVID-19 is a serious challenge.

The latest three confirmed
cases included the driver and security of the index case, while the other is an
individual who travelled to Sweden on January 29, 2020.

NPHIL Director General
Dr.Mosoka Fallah said:” The case involving the individual from Sweden remains a
mystery, as he became symptomatic for more than forty-three days after coming
back home on February 3, 2020.”

Addressing the COVID-19
update Thursday, April 2, 2020, Dr.Fallah explained that health authorities are
making frantic effort to establish the individual’s source of infection.

Dr.Fallah said forty-eight
contacts of the individual have been identified, while contact tracing is
continuing at his work place and place of worship to identify other contacts
for possible quarantine.

At the same time, Liberia
has been advised to abide by all health protocol, especially social distancing.

Health Minister Dr. Wilhelmina
Jallah said the IMT has observed that people are refusing to adhere to social
distancing.

The Minister said:” Mass
gathering of people is a recipe for the spread of the virus, and appealed to
everyone at the borders of Liberia to adjust their lives in ensuring that the
fight against the global pandemic is successful.”

Dr.Jallah is urging all
persons within the Country’s borders to continue washing their hands, keep
social distance, use protective mask and ensure washing hand facilities are
placed everywhere.

Health Minister Jallah
said there is global appeal for supports to African countries to help boost
their health sectors in ensuring the global fight against the COVID-19.

Jonathan O. Grigsby, Sr. a Liberian Journalist, currently employed with the Liberia Broadcasting System (LBS) and have worked at the entity for more than ten years. Over the years, he has been covering National and Local Elections in Liberia conducted by the National Elections Commission (NEC).
He reports on various diplomatic missions accredited near Monrovia, Water,
Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH), and reported also on the Ebola outbreak in the country also provide coverage on Local and International NGOs and Civil Society Organizations. He is currently, a senior student at the African United Methodist Episcopal United (AMEU), reading Sociology and Mass Communication.